The local lymph node assay (LLNA).

The murine local lymph node assay (LLNA) is a widely accepted method for assessing the skin sensitization potential of chemicals. Compared with other in vivo methods in guinea pig, the LLNA offers important advantages with respect to animal welfare, including a requirement for reduced animal numbers as well as reduced pain and trauma. In addition to hazard identification, the LLNA is used for determining the relative skin sensitizing potency of contact allergens as a pivotal contribution to the risk assessment process. The LLNA is the only in vivo method that has been subjected to a formal validation process. The original LLNA protocol is based on measurement of the proliferative activity of draining lymph node cells (LNC), as determined by incorporation of radiolabeled thymidine. Several variants to the original LLNA have been developed to eliminate the use of radioactive materials. One such alternative is considered here: the LLNA:BrdU-ELISA method, which uses 5-bromo-2-deoxyuridine (BrdU) in place of radiolabeled thymidine to measure LNC proliferation in draining nodes.